


To Old Friends

by AmberJeans



Series: Past The Present [2]
Category: Others to be announced as they come, Shadowrun, Shadowrun Hong Kong, Shadowrun Returns
Genre: Backstory, Canon, History, Spoilers, Violence, alternating povs, slight AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-14
Updated: 2019-08-25
Packaged: 2019-11-17 20:42:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,994
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18106097
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AmberJeans/pseuds/AmberJeans
Summary: This will be a series of stories that will supplement the main story 'In The Place Between Darkness And Light'.I will attempt to stick as closely to canon as I can.Thanks for reading!**Edit** Thanks to ghostfriendly I've changed numerous changes, most notably to dialogue and settings.--ON HIATUS PENDING REVISIONS--





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This chapter will highlight Carter during her days in Seattle, during Dead Man's Switch.  
> I feel as though Carter should've gotten a little more screen-time and so here it is.

“I’m telling you it’s the same as the last ones, Some random joe who was just in the wrong place, wrong time.”

The case had stretched into weeks, and now another unconnected stiff had been found lying about the street. One random organ lighter. The Redmond Barrens weren’t what you’d call a nice neighborhood, but the oddity of it had trapped Carter’s interest like a fly between window-panes. Organ Grinders, she knew, bought whole bodies, paying significantly less for pieces here and there. She’d no doubt that there were any number of people desperate enough to hock off a freshly dead body before it even had time to cool… not leave it out for anyone to find. 

“Yeah Tan, the local Organ Grinder claims to know nothing about the killings. And based on what we’ve uncovered so far I’d have to believe him. He seems like a trustworthy person and has been a huge help on the case and I... just a second Tan, I got something to take care of.”

A handsome dark elf with sharp pitch black hair stepped up to her and asked to be allowed to investigate the crime scene. 

Rolling her eyes she turned to address him. “I’m sorry sir but I can’t let you in here. ”

“Oh! He’s with me,” called a voice from behind her. She glanced over her shoulder to find the coroner smiling at the man in front of her.

“You sure about this, John?” When he nodded at her she turned and gave the elf a good once over, making a mental note of his features and expensive suit before rolling her eyes and stepping aside.

“Go ahead.” She said in a monotone voice. The dark-haired elf nodded his thanks before stepping past to the perpetually smiling dwarf on the ground behind her. 

She turned back to the crowd, glancing over her shoulders every so often at the elf and dwarf as they discussed the crime while she worked to keep everyone else away from the scene. 

Eventually the elf had finished his little investigation and had started to leave, before turning his head into the crowd. Carter watched on with interest as he made his way through the crowd, stopping to chat up someone within it. The person the elf was talking to wasn’t all that much taller than she herself was. His eyes, a dazzling shade of amber, held a hardness that told of a life on the street, an otherwise handsome angular face set in a seemingly-permanent scowl, and jet black hair. His open jacket, shirt and cargo pants were, she noticed, while not exactly the cutting edge in fashion, obviously well-made. Another thing that set him apart from the Redmond crowd.

A runner, then.

She watched as he and the elf discussed something she couldn’t make out, the runner’s eyes softened as time went on. The elf soon turned to leave, waving goodbye to the runner, who returned his airy gesture with something that approached a smile before turning back to the crime scene, the steely gaze back on his face.

Carter tapped her commlink. “Hey Tan, I just found something that I need to check out. I’ll talk to you later… no, nothing’s wrong. I just need to talk to someone… just keep a cup of soykaf for me when I get back okay? Thanks.” She then tapped off her commlink and walked up to the dark-skinned man. “Excuse me.” She couldn’t help but be a little unnerved by the look he gave her when he turned to acknowledge her. He wasn’t angry but even still he wasn’t exactly happy to see her. If anything he was defensive. That was fine; Carter could work with that. Time to put that training to the test.

She put on her best smle and returned the man’s gaze with a gentler one. “You’re not in trouble or anything; I just wanted to talk to you.” She felt it best to lead off with something non threatening, as she didn’t know what to make of him yet and she didn’t want to scare him off. “It’s just that I saw you talking to that one elf who was assisting the coroner and I was wondering if you’d be willing to answer a few questions.”

The man’s steely gaze became slightly unfocused and Carter felt the hairs on the back of her hair tingle. So this guy was a mage then. Briefly she considered calling him out on it but decided against it. She wanted him to trust her. And in order to do that she had to let him scan her.

Eventually clarity and steel returned to the man’s eyes. “Hello officer. What can I do for you?”

Okay, so he was aloof and direct. Most runners knew enough to be casual around ‘badges’ like her. Maybe he didn’t have anything to hide? Doubtful.

“What can you tell me about the killings?” She thought about starting with a soft question but no; if he was going to be direct, so was she.

“Nothing you haven’t heard on the news: there’s been a string of murders with each of the victims missing an organ.” For the briefest of moments, Carter could’ve sworn she saw a glimmer of sympathy in his hardened eyes.

“Have you seen anything out of the ordinary? Anything out of place?” In truth there wasn’t a whole lot she could go on but you couldn’t leave a stone unturned. 

He regarded for a long moment; long enough that she thought that he might either have known something or was about to try something. Smart money was on the former though. “You are aware that you are in the Barrens?” He cocked an eyebrow at her and nodded his head towards dead body. “Things like that are a common enough find for anyone. You can scarcely go a block before being jumped, mugged and possibly shot; and not necessarily in that order. Really, about the only thing out of place here would be peace and quiet.”

Had he just made a joke?

The buzzing sound of a commlink redirects the man’s gaze to his right ear. Wordlessly he holds a finger up to Carter and with his other hand activates it.“Yes?” Carter watched as his expression remained neutral. “I’m talking to Lone Star. ” he’d said, his gaze flickering briefly onto her before returning to the commlink, “No, they’re still looking into the Ripper killings.”

Carter’s hackles rose at that. On a serial killer case, at least (for victims that had SINs, at least…) Lone Star never quit until they got their man. 

Evidently the Runner didn’t like what he was hearing on the other end. “Seeing as I don’t know anything about what’s happening no, I haven’t told them anything. You of all people should know that by now.” His eyes narrowed. “Tell you what: you can dislodge or disprove whatever the hell you want when they ask you for help. I had nothing, so they got nothing. Simple as that.” The man seemed to cool down after that. “Okay I’ll see you later then.” He disconnected the call with a sharp grunt.

“Everything alright?” Carter maintained a neutral tone, though her curiosity remained.

The dark man turned towards her and gazed down at her, his eyes no longer as hard as they once were. “Yes but I’m required back home. Is there anything else you need officer…?”

“Carter,” the self-same law-woman declared proudly, “Officer Carter. And you are…?” she made sure to inject the same inflection he’d just given her, deploying a smile to put him at his ease, not on his guard.

The man held her gaze and nodded. “Zip.” He said simply. He didn’t return her smile but she was sure she’d seen his eyes twinkle. “It’s been a pleasure Officer Carter.” And with that he took off, gently into the rapidly-diminishing crowd. 

“Carter! We need to talk!” The sound of her name being called out by what sounded like a bullhorn made Carter’s eyes roll. 

McClusky. Great. As if today couldn’t get any more tiring.

“Coming McClusky!”  
_______________________

“I’m telling you, Tan, this guy knew something.”

Several days later, following several more murders the Ripper had been found. An uncharacteristically ugly elf, one Silas Forsberg, who killed and stole the name and medical practice of Dr. Henry Hollings Holmes. Apparently at the behest of another Silas killed a number of people and pulled parts out of their body. The bedlam that awaited Lone Star when they finally breached his asylum of horrors had shocked even the Redmond veterans. The bunraku in the basement... there was no way for them to reclaim their old lives. 

Even McCluskly had been uncharacteristically gun shy during the whole ordeal, though not enough to forget to take all the credit for the bust.

Back at the precinct Carter had just finished submitting her report on the grisly matter and was chatting amicably at her desk with a friend, an extremely handsome elf with long sun-kissed hair in a ponytail and bright tan skin. 

He had an easy smile on his face as he leaned against the divider by Carter’s desk, his shimmering grey eyes twinkled down at his friend. “Oh hun, you say that about all the men you meet. For all we know he could’ve just been some random hobo.”

Carter returned Tan’s gaze and. after a moment’s consideration, shook her head. “I don’t think so; he himself was too well put together. Too coherent. Too well-fed and no scent of dumpster.” 

Tan shrugged his rail-thin shoulders and snickered. “ But a runner? What do you think he was hiding?” 

Carter pondered that for a moment, her expression thoughtful. “He might be on the up, but I can’t be sure yet-”

Tan broke her thoughts off by getting in her face with a hungry expression. “Was he cute?”

Carter regarded her thirsty friend with a wry smile.“Yes, in a cold, frigid sort of way.” She chuckled. “I mean he wasn’t bad looking; shorter than I’d like but then that’s me. He was well-dressed. Closed off and cold. Though not so much after he got that call.”

Tan whistled appreciatively. “Sounds like quite a character. Think you’ll meet him again?” Tan was nothing if not transparent. 

“I’ll be sure to send him your way if I ever see him again.”

There was a twinkle in Tan’s eyes to match the giddiness in his voice. “You never know; you just might!” His expression then turned serious, all traces of his earlier joviality gone. “He was talking with that one guy from the Seamstresses Union. You don’t think that they’re running together do you?”

Carter nearly jumped out of her seat, a finger up against her lips as her eyes darted frantically around the busy office as she whispered furiously into her friend’s face. “You want to say that a little louder? I don’t think Internal Affairs quite caught that! You know we can’t discuss things like that here!” 

Tan had the good sense to look contrite. “Sorry. I forgot.” He pulled a seat from a nearby desk and sat close to Carter, close to the divider. “But still it’s more than a little suspicious, don’t you think? I mean he just sort of appeared out of nowhere one day and then things got real crazy real fast.”

Carter pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. “Tell me about it. We’ve been getting so many calls to the Barrens these past few days; I’ll be honest with you, I’ve seen more than I can stand of that place. It’s one giant sinkhole.” She tried and failed to keep the sorrow out of her voice.

Tan regarded her for a long moment with an unreadable expression.“Still think you can make a difference, C?” He asked. His tone was sardonic, but his eyes shimmered.

Carter slowly shook her head. “No, not there. There’s too much going on there right now.” She grew silent for a moment, her head downcast, before she turned upwards to stare into Tan’s gaze. “You know that the City’s going to shut the power down in Touristville right? In order to ‘offset the costs’ and ‘to make the city a more efficient, healthier place to live’. You and I both know that it’s just their way of getting rid of the undesirables, SINless and the like.”

A wry grin bloomed on the face of Carter’s fellow officer. “Now who needs to keep it down? But yeah, you’re right. We’ve just got to--” The tools on Carter’s desk jumped a few times as a large shadow slowly grew over them. “Shhh! Hold on!”

Turning in the direction of the footsteps Carter caught a glimpse of a massive wall of muscle and heavy body armor standing not ten feet from her. Looking up gave her the sight of several large tusks, sparkling white, with similarly-polished horns curving back around a massive head.

“Carter?” The troll’s gaze flicked between her and Tan several times before returning to her.

Carter looked up at him with a smile. “Travis?” She liked Travis; even though he was new he always gave it his all. 

Travis blinked “Can we talk for a second?” Carter noticed his absent shifting from one leg to the other.

She spun in her chair to fully face him. “About what? Need my help with something?”

More fidgeting from the ten foot troll. “Well I was hoping to get your input on a case I’m working on?”

Carter’s eyebrows flit up at that. “Why? What do you need--?”

“A smile from the pretty elf maid, isn’t it?”

Carter’s head swerved round, at the burst of venom from Tan’s mouth. She looked back to the troll; huge arms shaking at his sides, head bowed. At Tan again. His tilted head and thin smile of vicious contempt. 

“It’s rather sad, really. A trog with the old elf-fetish, too dumb to keep quiet and stick to his own sort--” 

“That’s enough, Tandius!” 

Carter didn’t bother to look around; she was certain that her little outburst had gotten everyone’s attention. She got out of her seat and, with a powerbolt-force glare at Tan, who scoffed and turned his head away, she turned back to Travis. The troll’s dirt-brown face was growing a furious blush, his body trembled with tension. She had to act, and fast.

“Travis,” she kept her tone even and pleasant, speaking just loudly enough that others could head but not so loud as to alarm anybody. No sense in keeping things quiet now. “What do you need help with?”

Travis slowly turned from Tan to regard Carter; now she saw the sparks of outrage in his eyes. His fists were still balled up but he closed his eyes and took several deep breaths.

“Do you remember you said something about the dark skinned elf, who searched the body of a Ripper victims? In your report, you said you’d also spoken with a possible associate?”

“Oh? You mean Zip?” That got Carter’s attention immediately. “What about him? Did something happen?”

Travis shook his head. “Not to him but the other guy I mentioned was caught inside of Telestrian by…” He visibly winched. “...McClusky. When I heard that he’d been called in for questioning I’d asked him if I could speak with him but he waved me off. Said that it was ‘above my paygrade’. I think he’s still gunning for his detective’s badge.”

 

Tan muttered something under his breath but otherwise did nothing. The troll’s hands returned to being fists, and shook furiously on his sides as his stony gaze shifted onto the irreverent elf. 

Carter glanced at both Tan and Travis and sighed. “Give a minute. I’ll see if I can come up with something.” Swiftly she turned on her commlink and entered in McClusky’s number. It beeped twice before she got a hold of him. “McClusky! How’ve you been? How’s my favorite ork?” 

With her free hand Carter gestured for Travis to come to her left side, watching with bated breath as he pulled away from glaring at the comparatively smaller elf on her right and retrieved a troll-sized chair, which he placed right next to her. She watched him setting in and patted his shoulder, giving him a gentle I-got-this smile that he returned, his tusks glistening underneath the fluorescent lights. “I’d heard that you were in charge of the guy from the Telestrain break-in? You know how easily word gets around in the office. Where is he now?” 

She turned and furiously jutted her fingers at Tandius, warning him to remain silent. Tan rolled his eyes but otherwise did just that. She returned to the call. “Do you need any help with anything? I can gather some people and be down there, just say the word.” 

She listened intently to what the man was saying on the other end, retaining a poker face. “If you’re worried about your promotion don’t; you know I got your back. It’ll still be your mark, no matter how many people you’ve got under you when you make it.”

She smiled at Tan, who chuckled back at her. “You will? You won’t regret this, we can go out for drinks after-- the Telestrian Estate! Why are you over there?” 

The sudden rise in her voice alerted both the troll on her left and the elf on her right, both of whom made to get out of their seats. “No. No, I’m worried, is all. Not everyday someone gets to go there.” 

Tandius and Travis continued to stare at her, all traces of their earlier antagonism seemingly vanished. “No. No I completely understand. Gotta play it close to the chest.”

Carter’s smile, though gentle, became a bit more plastic than she’d have liked. “Great. I’ll be down there in about twenty minutes. Talk to you soon and… Yes I’ll bring some guys along with me… Yes I’ll make sure that they’re quiet and capable. You can say that they were with you when we make your report… Excellent. See you soon.”


	2. Programmable Destination

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone's meeting at Telestrian Manor about the bugs.   
> Things take a turn for the worse for one of them.

So they’d decided to take him to Telestrian Manor. Home of James Telestrian III, proud CEO of Telestrian Industries, Prince of Tír Tairngire. The very last person any Runner of sense would want to meet.

What did that make the rowdy bunch he ran with? Chummers one and all; he’d never know what he’d do without them. And yet…

Thundering noises from behind him. A troll decker named Tac and an ork gunner who went by Napalm were currently in the process of turning the opulent greeting hall inside out. Expensive wooden tables that gleamed with gold and bronze shattered under the troll’s weight. Chairs and and ornaments were sent flying every which way.   


Zip levitated much of it out of the way, though he was sad to say that bits of history were lost in the ten minutes since the two had started. The household servants, for their part, didn’t do anything, aside from sparing a withering glance every now and then at the offending pair, leading Zip to suspect that the decor had been replaced with carefully-crafted replicas. Even so, better to not push their luck.

“Oy! Ease off the roughhousing. This is a prime-time establishment.”

His chummers desisted. Tac pulled himself off the ground, brushing off his expensive jacket. “Sorry Zip. Didn’t know you cared so much about these Bellevue types.”   


“I don’t.” He was  emphatic about that. “But these Bellevue types can use their Bellevue money to buy some Bellevue bullets and I’d prefer not getting shot in the hoop.”

The ork, Napalm, cocked his head at Blink and grinned, revealing an impressive row of fangs. “Ay. Good call omae.” At least he could listen to reason, though it had been a challenge getting him to listen at all. He didn’t like Bellevue types either.

Then Zip sensed the shadow that fell on his back. The door was still closed- no footfalls on the plush carpet- not even a gust of air,  _ Had he just…? _

“It is not everyday that one witnesses magic such as yours.” The voice was rich and cultured, each word carefully tasted like a delicacy. “It is not something one often finds in the present age.”

“And,” the tall, white-haired man loomed closer, seemingly pressing the smaller mage against the pillar with his presence alone, “it is likely something that my lord would like very much to behold.” His golden eyes held Zip like a claw.

Pushing past his growing dread, Zip opened his third eye and assensed the man who loomed over him; nothing. There was a black wall were his aura should be. It pushed against his mind, compressing his sight until he was back within himself.   


Even when he shut his sight in a panic, the wall kept pressing into his mind. The white-haired man smiled, too pleasantly. Zip flicked his eyes to his right, to his chummers. Laughter. Shouting. Having a good time. They hadn’t noticed anything.  _ Why? _

A frantic leftward glance, revealing another disturbing stranger- or possibly just disturbed?  Red diamonds stretched across his face, the rest ashen white. Decked from head to toe in what looked to be old-world jester’s motley.

**_Harlequin._ ** The word enters his mind and leaves through his mouth. How’d he know? The man, Harlequin, winks at him and raises a finger to his lips, begging for silence. Then the same finger falls to his right and gestures to an obscenely decorated golden vase on a pedestal, the coils of a large silvery dragon wrapped around its center.   


He catches Zip’s eyes and slides his own over to the intimidating man who’d pushed himself into his space, as his finger wagged at the vase. Confusion gripped Zip’s confused mind- just what was he trying to tell him? Gold vase, big dragon?   


He looked -fearfully, quickly- from the strange Harlequin to the intimidating stranger. The grey wall came crashing forward. His mind slammed shut.

_ Lofwyr. _

He opened his mouth to speak. Nothing. He sought to move. Still nothing. A booming voice deep within his own mind spoke to him, in his own voice.   


**Be still. Be silent.  
**

“-and know,” the man, -LOFWYR!!-, had continued speaking, his voice lingering like a cold touch, though Zip was unable to respond. Body and mind were still, the charging dark wall having knocked control of his spirit from him. “-that Saeder-Krupp would very much appreciate one of your talents. As you are no doubt aware Lord Lofwyr is constantly looking for competent employees. However, he is well aware that such a transaction would be ill-timed. The Universal Brotherhood must be foiled, must it not?”

He asked, despite knowing that Zip couldn’t answer. “There is also the matter of your other qualifications; are you a one-note magi who is only good for a singular spell or is there more to see? The upcoming raid against Universal Brotherhood should provide fertile results. What do you say? Do we have a deal?”

The next words came out without any input on his part, over the roaring dismissal that arose from his own spirit. “Deal.” He took the outstretched hand, again against his wishes, and shook it.

A wide, predatory grin stretched out across the man’s face. “Excellent. I will be in contact with you once you return.  **_If_ ** you return. I look forward to your success.”    


Zip fell against the marble pillar he’d been leaning against and slumped to the floor as the strange man -Lowfyr!- marched towards Harlequin and through the open door behind him, the imposing grey wall receding from Zip’s mind the further away he went. Harlequin caught Zip’s eyes again and winked before turning to follow, closing the door behind him.   


The vase as gone, as was the pillar it perched on. Illusions. He looked to his friends; no they were still talking. The door had trace amounts of magic around it; more illusions. Had Harlequin followed Lofwyr out the door? Had it been him who’d cast the illusion? Who’d spoken into his mind? What was his game?

A dark-skinned elf -his friend, his leader- pulled away from the pack and headed his way. With every step he took Zip became aware of a tiny grey marble deep within his mind that seemed to grow larger as the elf drew closer. Zip felt himself being pressed flat in his own mind.   


“Hey you alright Zip? Did you get enough sleep? You were using a lot of magic yesterday and with all this drek you must be dog tired.”

The next words that came out of Zip’s mouth were not his own. “I’m fine. Just a little dizzy.” The marble shrunk with each word. But not fast enough for Zip, who started to fight against it.

“I can imagine.” The elf looked away, hesitant for a moment, then their leader looked back. “Hey I’m sorry to ask but I could really use your help. I’ve got to put together a crew to go clear out the hive underneath the Universal Brotherhood’s little playhouse and I’d like you to come along. Telestrian’s giving us some guns full of a formula that supposedly kills dual-natured things. We’ll have a chance to kill the fragging ghost-bugs this time.  I’d like to have you along. What do you say?”

Zip had been fighting the marble for the entirety of the elf’s talk and as such was only vaguely aware of what he’d been saying. However the same couldn’t be said for the diminished bauble, which shrank into nothing after its next words. “Don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine.” The words came out with a smile.  _ It made him smile. _

There was more hesitation. “Alright. Sit tight, I’ll be back.” And with that he went back to the rest of the crew. His chummers.   


It hit Zip then; none of them had seen anything. None of them knew just who was in the other room deciding their fates. Should he say something? Would Lowfyr not take action against him as he was known to do against anybody who deigned to get in his way? Would be able to convey what had happened? Would his words truly be his own?

What could he do?

________

Carter had had enough waiting. Waiting was killing her. Two hours she’d been stuck on the outside, not knowing what was going on. Just because she was an elf, everyone thought that she’d be the first to know about what was going on. Nope.

Travis stepped up beside her, opposite Tandius, his footsteps loud on the concrete. “Hey Carter. What’d you think? Them Bellevue types got some secret meeting going on in there or something?”

“What makes you think I know anything?” She snapped, her works packing more bite than intended, “I’m out here, just like you, not knowing my front from my back; eating cheap biscuits and waiting for something that might not go anywhere- wait. Drek. Sorry Travis. You didn’t deserve any of that.” she smiled at him to let him know it wasn’t him.   


Beside her Tan chuckled. “Don’t worry about it. It’s been said that the higher a person’s head is in the clouds,” he flicked his dark emerald gaze over Travis, a smile at the burning hatred in the latter’s own mahogany glare, “The less in touch they are with others, so I suppose it couldn’t be helped. That said girl _ ,  _ you don’t look good. What’s the matter? Did McClusky ask you to do something unspeakable?”

Carter turned to him. “Oh no. God no. Just nerves. Haven’t heard anything from the guys inside, even after hours of waiting.”   


A soft whistle. “I hear you there.”

As if on cue the huge double-wide doors open. Out comes the fierce visage and cheap attire that can only belong to one man…

“Officer McClusky!” Travis pulled off a salute which sent the elves rolling their eyes.   


At the sound of his name the ork turns and makes his way to the group, his eyes and walk focused solely on Carter.   


“Officer McClusky. What’s the situation?” Such a rookie.

McClusky gave Travis the briefest of glances. “You’re new here so I’ll let you off with a warning but just so you know, the secrets within these walls are worth more than you ever will be, so don’t go asking stupid questions.”   


His face is considerably softer when he turns to Carter. “That doesn’t have to pertain to you, sweetheart.” His intent was plain; subtly wasn’t something McClusky was known for.

“That’s um… great sir but I-”

The doors again flew open to Carter’s relief. Out of them came the dark elf they’d just taken in, an… incredibly ostentatious elf in  _ face paint _ who Carter had pegged for an Ancient, a rugged-looking woman with a swagger and a cyber arm. And Zip, the young mage she’d been harping on about.   


Tandius whispered into Carter’s ear. “Is that him? You were right, he is kinda cute. For a Runner.”

“Aren’t they supposed to be under arrest?” Travis was considerably less enthused than Tan. “Didn’t we just arrest them? Why are they walking free?”

“I don’t know but I intend to find out.” Carter broke away from the group, pushing past McClusky. “Hey Zip!” She inflected an airy sense of joy to let him know all was well, but the mage didn’t seem to hear her. And when she got closer Carter noticed something… off, about Zip. Where as he was just quiet and closed off before, the term best describing him now would be… subdued. Like he’d been tethered to some invisible leash.   


What the  _ hell _ happened in there? “Hey Zip, you okay chummer?” She gently rested a hand on his shoulder. “Talk to me buddy.”

As she said that the painted elf covered his mouth and chuckled, earning curious glances from the dark elf and rough-looking woman.  _ What the hell is going on here? _

  
  
  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Yes the dark-skinned elf is the protagonist of Dead Man's Switch.  
> I used him because of the bonus to charisma that elves got and I wanted to play as a face.  
> ...Coincidentally, I was terrible at just about everything else. Life's about balance kids!
> 
> **Edit** Thanks to Ghostfriendly for editing this. You're a lifesaver!


End file.
